


If Wishes Were Horses

by Pony Girl (Jackjunkie)



Category: Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Genre: Action/Adventure, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-16
Updated: 2012-10-16
Packaged: 2017-11-16 10:18:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/538408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jackjunkie/pseuds/Pony%20Girl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hercules must race to retrieve a rare substance needed to treat a gravely wounded Iolaus.</p>
            </blockquote>





	If Wishes Were Horses

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published in the zine Compadres #11

"And then the carts would come rolling down in their tracks, faster and faster, the riders screaming, their arms waving wildly as they coasted to a stop at the bottom of the artificial mountain." The stout little man finished his description with a flourish of his hands, as if shaping the image he could see so clearly in his mind's eye. Beaming at his listeners, he awaited a response.

The two younger men continued to stroll along the village street as he hustled to keep up with their strides. "So, whaddya think, huh?" he prompted.

The taller of the two wrinkled his brow in puzzlement. "That's supposed to be fun?" His doubtful tone reflected his bewildered expression. "Salmoneus, you called your idea an 'amusement park,' but it doesn't sound very amusing to me. It sounds uncomfortable."

"Oh, I dunno, Herc." The shorter man with the tumbled blond curls grinned. "That one part - It's a Very Big World, was that it? - the one with the beautiful women from all over, dressed in their native garb, performing their regional dances and songs - that sounded pretty amusing to me."

"Somehow I'm not surprised. Okay, Iolaus, but some of the others... Pirates of the Aegean?" Hercules objected. "People don't like pirates. They try to keep away from pirates. Why would anyone pay good dinars to be attacked by pirates on purpose?"

"For the excitement, for the thrill!" Skipping happily alongside the pair like a puppy eager to please, Salmoneus tried to explain his vision. "Think of the average Cletus Q. Public. He doesn't have real adventures every day like we do. Most people lead dull, ordinary lives. They aren't like you or me, Hercules."

Sharply elbowing Iolaus, who quickly turned what had started out sounding suspiciously like a laugh into a cough, Hercules covered the noise by saying, "Salmoneus, the last thing I'd call you was dull or ordinary."

"Exactly!" Salmoneus exclaimed. "That's why I'm just the man to make a success of this, because I have the experience. It'll all be perfectly safe of course. I'm going to give people the adventure without the danger. Well, not give - they'll pay for it, naturally." He rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Ri-ight. What did you call this place of yours again?" Hercules inquired.

"Ooh, I have the perfect name for it - Salmoneus Land," Salmoneus declaimed grandly.

Iolaus coughed again.

Hercules said, "That...will certainly let everyone know who's in charge."

Plump lips pursed in consideration. "Hmm, you're right, and also who to blame if anything goes wrong. It might be a better idea not to be quite so up front with the name. You never know how things are going to work out." He waved away those thoughts with a confident smile. "Never mind. I did have an alternate choice - how does Olympus Land sound?"

"Very...Olympian," Hercules pronounced.

"I think it has a nice ring to it." Iolaus nodded encouragingly to the enterprising businessman. "You can count on me to be a customer."

Suddenly a shout was heard. "For the glory of Hera!"

A wild-eyed man sprang from an alley at their side. Brandishing a sword, he rushed headlong at Hercules.

Salmoneus yelped and tripped. While Hercules reached down to help him out of the way, Iolaus leaped in front to guard his friend.

His goal blocked, the man swung at the nearer target instead. "No one stands in Hera's way!" The sword slashed across Iolaus' forearm.

Looking woozily down at the blood dripping from the gash in his left arm, Iolaus attempted to staunch the flow by placing his other hand over the wound. He shook his head as though attempting to clear it, then staggered, dropping to his knees. "Ouch, that stings," he observed in faint surprise before keeling over on his face in the dirt.

"Iolaus!" Hercules looked around in time to see his friend pass out, his assailant standing over him with the sword bloody from his wound. Leaving Salmoneus safely behind, he charged.

The sword flew from the man's hand as he was tackled to the ground. He tried to resist, but without a weapon he was no match for the son of Zeus. He soon lay gasping, without the strength to stand, much less fight such a muscular opponent.

Hercules yanked him to his feet. "We'll see if Hera bothers to protect you from the village magistrate. She doesn't like failures. She must be getting sloppy to send one man alone to do her dirty work." His eyes narrowed. "Or did she arm you with one of her special toys?" He turned quickly to see how his friends were faring. "Don't touch that sword!" he yelled.

Salmoneus jumped and pulled back his arm as though it had been scorched. He cast a nervous look back down at the fallen weapon.

"Iolaus is a seasoned warrior. He wouldn't faint from a scratch like that...unless the sword were poisoned," Hercules deduced.

Salmoneus scurried away as if afraid some noxious concoction would flow out from the blade to infect him.

"That's it, isn't it?" Hercules shook their attacker. "You coward, you poisoned him!"

"It's the best way to exterminate vermin," the man spat back.

"Salmoneus, find the local healer fast. I'll join you as soon as I see this fellow locked up." He turned back to his prisoner. "You'd better pray that Iolaus lives."

*****

Iolaus lay on a pallet in the healer's home, his bandaged arm crooked across his chest. He appeared to be unconscious, but his head turned feverishly this way and that, and from time to time he cried out wordlessly. Salmoneus sat beside him, trying to quiet his restless tossing while the healer consulted with Hercules.

He peered closely at the sword which the hero had brought for him to examine, taking care to touch no portion of it. "A nameless poison sent by Hera," he mused.

"The swordsman had no idea what it was. He was merely following her instructions."

"Pity. Without knowing its composition, I don't see how it can be possible to formulate an antidote." 

"There must be something you can do." There was a desperate note in Hercules' voice.

The healer looked up and noted the distress in his eyes. Patting his arm compassionately, he paced slowly across the room to his patient. He stood there for a time, arms folded, regarding Iolaus thoughtfully. Tapping his chin, he opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again and shook his head.

"What? Have you thought of something?" Hercules demanded.

"There is one small chance..." the healer began. "But no, it would never work. There's not enough time."

"What is it? You must tell me! If there's any chance at all..."

"No, you mustn't get your hopes up. It was a foolish idea."

"Even a foolish idea may be found to have some sense in it," Salmoneus spoke up gently. "Even if it would have no chance ordinarily, don't forget that he's Hercules - and capable of extraordinary feats."

"Salmoneus is right. Please let us judge your idea." Hercules looked pleadingly at the man of medicine.

Hesitating a moment more, the healer sighed and gave in. "There may be a way to counteract even a poison made by the gods. We must apply a poultice made from certain plants grown in the Sacred Grove of the Dryads near Thessaly. I think it would work, though I can't be sure."

Hercules' spirits rose again and he clapped the man's shoulders in relief. "That's great! I'll go there and get them. Just tell me what to bring back."

"No, you don't understand. It's too far away. You'd never reach it in time. Iolaus would die before we could give him the treatment. So you see, it's no use."

Soberly Hercules responded, "We can cut the time in half if I take Iolaus there to treat him."

The healer sadly shook his head. "Even you, Hercules, cannot run fast enough for that."

"I can at least try. I have to try. I won't just sit here and wait for Iolaus to die!" He slammed his hand down on a table. The sound reverberated around the room, punctuating his determination.

The healer bowed his head and refrained from arguing.

Salmoneus ventured a thought. "Too bad you couldn't turn into a dove and fly there, like your friend Nemesis you were telling me about."

"Dove? Or...not a dove, but... That's it! Salmoneus, you're a genius."

"Me? Oh, no...you think? No...but then, who am I to argue...?"

Hercules interrupted. "Maybe there is a way to travel fast enough. Salmoneus, you have to take a message for me."

"Anything I can do, gladly."

He sent Salmoneus off and turned back to the healer. "There's no time to lose. I'll take Iolaus and start for the grove myself. If my friend can help, Salmoneus will tell him to meet us on the way. Now tell me what plants to use and what to do."

*****

Hercules ran along the trail to Thessaly, his friend held closely in his arms. His footfalls beat a refrain over and over in his head: Live, Iolaus, live, Iolaus, live, Iolaus...

If he could just hang on until they reached the sacred grove. He had to get there in time. He just had to. Iolaus was not going to die. Hera had killed his wife and his children. She was not going to kill his best friend, too. Not if he could help it.

That poison was meant for him, not for his friend. Hercules wasn't sure he could forgive himself if Iolaus died in his place. He knew it was Iolaus' choice to always fight by his side - a choice he'd made with his eyes wide open. Iolaus was a grown man, a warrior, well able to take care of himself. Nevertheless, Hera's quarrel was with Hercules, so how could he not feel responsible if another came to harm as a result of the goddess' wrath?

Iolaus knew what a powerful enemy Hera was, yet he had never forsaken his best friend. No one, Hercules included, would have blamed him if he'd taken the safer path and gone his own way. No, he wouldn't have blamed him a bit - but he'd have missed him terribly.

Hercules had many friends, but losing Iolaus would be like losing a part of himself. He'd gone through that when he'd lost his family. He didn't want to go through it again. He wasn't sure he could bear it, not this way. After all, he was only human. Or at least half-human. People tended to forget that. They concentrated on the half-god part of him, but he had the same human needs as they all did, the same feelings, and the same hurts. He didn't want to think about how badly it would hurt if Iolaus died, so it was better to concentrate on making sure that didn't happen. He tightened his arms and tried to force himself to a faster pace. He wished the fleet friend he'd sent for would arrive. Live, Iolaus, live, Iolaus...

Gradually he became aware of a low rumbling sound, building in volume. He thought he felt vibrations beneath his feet. The tremors increased until from the earth in front of him erupted a hideous creature, seemingly half-man, half-serpent. Balancing upright on its fearsome tail, it emitted an unearthly howl and reached its hands towards his throat.

Turning sideways to protect Iolaus, Hercules aimed a powerful kick for the creature's midsection. It went down, and he swiftly followed up with a series of kicks to its head, knocking it unconscious.

No sooner had he taken one step away than he heard another rumbling and two similar creatures burrowed from the earth at his sides. He kicked out again with lightning speed, first in one direction, then the next. It halted the man-serpents briefly, but did them no serious damage. Getting a second wind, they launched themselves at him. Hercules stood immobile, then ducked just in time for them to collide with each other. Two more down.

Another rumble, and a trio of the creatures appeared at his back.

"This is not good," he complained as he whirled to face the new threat. "I don't have time for this!" With a yell, he lowered his head and butted one of the creatures into the others. They fell in a yowling tangle with a thrashing of tails, then squirmed apart and rose, circling warily round him. Trying to watch all three of them at once, Hercules waited for an opening.

Just then he heard a whoosh of feathers and a shadow crossed his path. Another rumble sounded across the earth, this time a galloping of hooves as a great white horse thundered down upon the combatants. As it raced past, the rider reached down a hand to help Hercules vault onto the horse's back behind him, Iolaus held carefully in place between them.

"Bellerophon! Am I glad to see you! That was perfect timing."

Never slowing down, the rider tossed an answer over his shoulder. "Pegasus and I are happy to help, my friend. You know I bear no love for Hera."

"We have to hurry. Iolaus may not have much time."

"Hold on, then - up we go!"

At these words, the mighty steed unfolded alabaster wings and rose gracefully into the air, leaving the man-serpents gaping helplessly upward. Extending to his full wingspan, Pegasus sailed higher and higher, increasing his speed until they were rushing over the terrain below faster than anything possible on land. Hercules felt renewed hope that they would indeed be in time to save his friend's life.

*****

Flying was a peaceful mode of travel, as well as a swift one. Hercules felt lighter, as if the weight of his worries had been left behind on the ground. It was comfortable and quiet up here, with only an occasional passing bird for company. The feathered creatures seemed to consider the magical winged steed as one of their own and gave them no special notice.

After a while he spied one bird flying towards them that seemed to be quite a large specimen. The closer it came, the larger it grew, until Hercules saw that it was no bird at all, but a reptilian sort of creature with wicked looking claws and beak. He couldn't recall seeing its like before. Pointing to their visitor, he tapped Bellerophon, who looked and promptly headed Pegasus away from its path. The creature altered course to follow them.

"That thing's on an errand for Hera, I'll wager," Hercules guessed. "Bellerophon, lend me your sword."

The horseman passed it back. Loosening Iolaus' bandage, Hercules wiped the blade across the bloody underside of the cloth before fastening it back in place.

The creature was upon them. Letting out a screech, it flew straight at Hercules. Whipping up the sword, he slashed at the creature, nicking it as it swerved to avoid the weapon. That was all it took. The screech turned into a squawk as the creature wavered, then plummeted to earth. Wiping the sword on Iolaus' bandage had coated it with the poison seeping from his wound. Hercules thought it was poetic justice to turn Hera's foul methods on her own messenger.

*****

Hercules was feeling worried again by the time they glided to a landing in the dryads' sacred grove. Iolaus felt hotter to him, like his fever was burning higher, and he had lost all signs of restlessness. He seemed sunk in a deathly stillness. With an effort, Hercules shoved all such thoughts out of his mind. Laying Iolaus carefully on the grass, he set about the tasks that would save his friend's life.

After watering Pegasus at a stream and setting him to graze, Bellerophon joined him to help.

"We need to heat some water to brew some of the plants." Hercules handed Bellerophon a cup he'd brought along for the purpose. Filling it with water from the stream, the horseman proceeded to build a fire, while Hercules gathered the plants as the healer had instructed.

He returned to the fire to see Bellerophon trying to use some sticks to make a stand to hold the cup safely over the blaze.

"Here, let me show you." Hercules soon had the water bubbling lightly while a fragrant aroma from the plants wafted through the grove.

"The son of Zeus has many talents," Bellerophon remarked.

"It's an old hunter's trick," Hercules said with a melancholy smile. Sweating from the fire's heat, he brushed back a lank lock of hair. "Iolaus taught it to me."

"We're almost through," the horseman comforted him. "He'll make it."

"The healer wasn't even sure this would work. If it doesn't..." He was interrupted by a soft whinny and a nudge in the back.

"I think Pegasus is telling you to stop worrying, too."

"Smart horse."

"I think so. They say sometimes animals can tell things we can't. It may be he senses Iolaus will recover."

Hercules patted the animal affectionately. "I'll try to take your advice, Pegasus. I wish you may be right."

They pulverized the remaining plants with stones, and then mixed them with the hot plant and water mixture to form a paste. Hercules applied it to Iolaus' arm, which he carefully rewrapped in a clean bandage. All they could do now was wait.

Extinguishing the fire, they prepared for the return journey. Hercules was taking back a supply of the plants for the healer for future use. Pegasus snuffled at Iolaus' golden curls and pranced a bit, impatient to be off.

"We're coming, my friend. You've done good work this day," Bellerophon praised the beautiful horse. Pegasus tossed his head in response as if to say, "Don't I always?"

Hercules lifted Iolaus efforlessly into his arms once again and joined them.

They remounted and flew back without further hindrance. Hera probably realized she'd lost this round, although Hercules knew their war would go on.

*****

By the time they reached the village, Hercules noted that Iolaus seemed cooler and less flushed. He hoped that was a good sign. At least he was still alive.

The healer welcomed them back in glad surprise and immediately set about examining the patient.

Hercules waited anxiously. He'd done his part; it was out of his hands now. He could only stand and watch. He wished he could do more. He much preferred action. He hated this. Why was it taking so long? What did all those "hmm's" mean? Were all healers so infuriatingly calm? He felt a surge of fear mixed with hope when at last the man turned to him with a smile.

"I see no signs of continued fever. The poison seems to be working its way out of his system. It's early to be entirely sure, but I believe your friend will recover."

Hercules laughed and shook the healer's hand jubilantly. "That is such a relief to hear! Thank you. We were lucky to find such a knowledgeable healer."

"You were lucky to have such a swift friend," the healer smiled in return.

Agreeing, Hercules went out to share the good news with Bellerophon and found him deep in discussion with Salmoneus. He hoped that wasn't a bad sign.

*****

"Welcome back." Hercules smiled joyously as Iolaus' eyes fluttered open, eyes that were clouded with confusion for a moment, but that cleared upon beholding his friend.

Iolaus tried to sit up, but winced as he put pressure on his sore arm. Hercules helped him get settled in a comfortable position. "That must have been some party. I don't remember a thing."

"For one of Hera's parties, it turned out surprisingly well." Hercules sounded a bit grim.

Iolaus' eyes grew wide. "Hera? That explains it. Since we're both in one piece - I am in one piece, aren't I?" He paused a moment to check himself out. Reassured, he resumed what he was saying. "...I take it you managed without me?"

"I'd never want to manage without you, Iolaus, you know that." Hercules' blue eyes shone in quiet enjoyment to have his friend back again. "I wasn't sure you'd be sticking around for a while there, but some friends helped us out. I'll tell you all about it when you're stronger. Right now, I think you need to get some rest."

Iolaus began to protest, when they were interrupted by a third voice.

"Oho, so the patient's awake, I see." Salmoneus' head poked round the corner, followed by the rest of him. "Glad to have you back among the living. Just a figure of speech," he hastily added at Iolaus' dismayed look and changed the subject. "You know, Hercules, your friends gave me a wonderful new idea for Olympus Land."

"These are the friends you were talking about, Herc?" Iolaus asked.

"I said I'd tell you later. Salmoneus..."

"We can fashion baskets in the shape of winged horses," he went on unheedingly, "and arrange them in a circle hanging from a network of poles for small children to ride in. I shall call it the "Flying Pegasus" ride. Of course, it won't be like really flying the way you two did, but I couldn't talk them into coming to work at my park."

"Flying? What does he mean 'really flying?'" Iolaus sat up straight in alarm.

"Not now, Salmoneus. Iolaus, I don't think it's good for you to get agitated in your condition. Now please lie back down."

"Lie down?! If you think I can get a wink of sleep after hearing a thing like that, without knowing the whole story..."

"What'd I say? I'm just trying to work out my new idea. This opens up a whole new concept in kiddie rides. It can't miss. Why, I could make a fortune..."

Hercules threw up his hands and sighed. "I'm the one who wanted everything back to normal. I guess I got my wish."

"Wish, wish... You know, I've been looking for a theme song for the park. How's this sound? When you wish upon a horse..."

THE END


End file.
